Proposed cuts
decriedUniversity community speaks out at public hearings on UConn
funding
by Thomas Becher (February 28,
1997)

Students, faculty and staff lashed out at
proposed cuts in the state budget for higher education Wednesday
during a public hearing in the Student Union lobby held by the
General Assembly's Appropriations Committee.

"The government keeps putting obstacles
in front of us. It's a shame if we're not going to succeed
because of budget cuts," said Hilary Norberg, a political
science major.

"Every waterfall has to start with one
drop," he said. "I hope you continue to be that first
drop for the students."

"You cannot keep cutting the
University's budget and expect economic development to
flourish," Merrill told the students. "We're in a
position to change the governor's budget but we need your help
to do it."

During hearings at the Legislative Office
Building last Thursday, lawmakers were told that Connecticut is at
or near the bottom among states in funding for public higher
education. Michael Kozlowski, secretary of the Office of Policy and
Management, the governor's budget office, countered that the
state is among the best in per-student expenditures.

About the only thing anyone could agree on is
that the clock is ticking to restore cuts to higher education
proposed by OPM. The Appropriations Committee must decide how much
money to restore for higher education by April 24.

According to the governor's budget
document, the proposal would mean a $27 million cut for UConn
during the next two fiscal years.

OPM on Monday announced that UConn would
receive an additional $2.3 million in salary
adjustments.

"The bottom line remains that these are
huge cuts that, left intact, will give us less in state
appropriations in 1998-99 than we received in 1988-89 -- a decade
later," said Scott Brohinsky, director of governmental and
University relations. "If a $13.5 million annual reduction
were to be made up in a tuition increase, it would require more
than $1,000 per student a year. That can't happen. The
alternative would be massive programmatic or personnel cuts, and we
can't let that happen, either."

State Rep. William Dyson, D-New Haven,
co-chair of the Appropriations Committee, offered to look at the
issue thoroughly.

"How much of the state's resources
are going to provide for higher education?" he asked. "I
have a sense the committee is firmly behind discussing all aspects
of this dilemma. It's going to require a lot of discussion. The
resolution won't be a Band-Aid."

Education leaders told committee members that
reducing the budget for higher education would have dire
consequences both for institutions and students struggling with
ever-higher tuition bills.

"Connecticut needs to invest in higher
education to meet its goals of economic development," Andrew
DeRocco, commissioner of higher education, told the Appropriations
Committee. "Connecticut's record is of sporadic attention
to its colleges and universities. What I see is a state that treats
higher education as discretionary.

"The proposal will have grave
consequences for the higher education system," he said.
"It's at worst devastating and at best
undoable."

UConn originally submitted a budget request
of $148.9 million for 1997-98 and $152 million for 1998-99. Prior
to this week's adjustment, the budget office recommended $135
million for the University in 1997-98 and $136.8 million in
1998-99.

The University received $138.5 million in
1988-89.

Austin testimony
That would put UConn in a difficult bind,
President Philip E. Austin testified.

"If we suffer yet another reduction in
the state appropriation, it will inexorably invite upward pressure
on tuition levels, although I am committed to hold the line,"
he said. "As the state's public university, we have the
responsibility to provide high-quality academic programs at an
affordable price."

"It's the quality of faculty that
determines academic excellence. And that's a national
market," he said. "We have to provide the University with
enough resources to compete."

Cutting money for higher education would be
like biting the hand that feeds the state's economy, he
said.

"We can still lose this economic fight.
There is no chance in the world that the manufacturing jobs that
continue to leave this state are ever going to come back,"
Austin said. "Is there anyone who honestly believes that the
insurance companies are going to restore jobs? Is there anyone who
really believes we can compete successfully for jobs with the
Southeast United States?

"The way in which Connecticut, in my
opinion, is going to be successful is by investing in higher
education and improving the education levels of the citizenry and
thereby attracting those industries and those jobs ... with a
higher level of value added."

Austin diverted from his proposed text to
answer legislators' concerns about Hartford Courant articles
discussing how athletic and UConn Foundation funds have been
spent.

"It seems to me that if we are to gain
the respect of the public and maintain it, not only must we be
accountable for our expenditures, both public funds and those
contributed, but we must also find new and more efficient ways of
doing business, and that means collaborations with other
institutions," Austin said.

"Do we make mistakes? Yes we do. And
serious errors in judgment were made."

In the future, he added, "We not only
must act in a conservative and sensible and pragmatic way, we must
be sensitive to perceptions of past errors through prudent use of
resources."

As for the Courant articles, Dyson said:
"The perception is there and it undermines the very thing you
want us to do -- provide additional resources. The institution is
not above the fray."

Committee members quizzed Austin about
administrative expenses, but he said he was "perplexed"
about budget statistics showing a bloated bureaucracy at the
University. "It's simply based on erroneous data," he
said.

"First and foremost, Governor Rowland
believes strongly that our public higher education system is a
critical component of the state's future," he told the
committee. "Further, he believes strongly in the need for
Connecticut to provide public educational opportunities for all
those who wish to attend public college in state."

Kozlowski cited a study showing that only
Wyoming and North Carolina spend more per student on higher
education than did Connecticut last year. But DeRocco, Austin and
the leaders of the Connecticut State University system and
community-technical colleges countered that spending for daily
operations has remained flat during the past decade while costs
have gone up. A report in Governing magazine ranked Connecticut
50th among the states in percent of personal income spent on higher
education.

With the proposed cuts, Rowland is merely
looking for more efficiency, Kozlowski said.

"It is the governor's firm belief
that generating such efficiencies can be accomplished while at the
same time maintaining or improving services provided to our
students," he said. "It was on this basis that the
governor asked the state colleges and university systems to review
their budgets with an eye toward reducing administrative overhead
and reallocating funding to education-related
areas."

Austin told reporters after his testimony
that he hopes the University and OPM can agree on a common
definition of terms for legislators.

"This is the first salvo," he said.
"We will get them the data and the evidence to help them make
decisions."

He said he has not yet decided what cuts will
be made at UConn should the budget proposal stand.

"I'm not sure what the final impact
will be," he said. "Something has to give. We're
going to have to stop doing some activities and raise the
price.

"I'm not prepared to reveal plans.
Discussions have occurred on how to deal with any kind of
cuts."

Dyson, meanwhile, said he wants to resolve
differences "without engaging in an extensive watering
contest."

Speaking out
More than 100 speakers made their case in
opposition to the proposed cuts during a public hearing last
Thursday evening.

Students from UConn, the Connecticut State
University System and the community-technical colleges packed a
hearing room to tell committee members the dangers of additional
reductions.

"The Connecticut I remember gave me the
opportunity for a quality, affordable education," Kevin Fahey,
president of the University of Connecticut Professional Employees
Association (UCPEA), told committee members. "This is not an
opportunity for our children and grandchildren. ... The future of
this state lies in higher education. The economic future of the
state lies in higher education."

"One does not need to be a high-tech
scientist to look into the future of the University in light of the
proposed budget cuts," added Faquir Jain, professor of
electrical engineering and president of the UConn chapter of the
American Association of University Professors. "In my view, it
is not at all encouraging."

With faculty vacancies along with higher
tuition, the president of the Graduate Student Senate, Julie Cyr,
also wondered about the future.

"With this trend, my question is, who
will teach the undergraduates?" she asked. "And if there
are no faculty, who are the graduate students going to work
for?"

Alumni also pleaded with the
committee.

"I believe that the graduates I have or
have had in my employment have contributed in some way to the
economic success stories here in Connecticut," said Rosalyn
Cama '75, president of a New Haven interior design firm.
"The University of Connecticut has served me well and I ask
that you continue to support the increases that institution finds
necessary to support our state's economic
base."